Wednesday, 7 October 2009

Tried to post the other day and my browser won't work. Came to the general conclusion that modern computers require a nearly constant Internet connection to keep updating themselves, and I don't have that any more. I could take my computer round somebody else's house and update it, but the same thing would undoubtedly happen again before long, so have just decided I can't be bothered.

I am now going to produce a paper newsletter monthly with news from HeolCennen and thoughts regarding sustainability. If you would like to receive this, please send a stamped addressed envelope to 60 HeolCennen, Ffairfach, Llandeilo, SA19 6UH, United Kingdom.

I am going to leave this blog here for posterity and as a point of reference but I will not be posting or reading comments any more.

Thanks to everybody for reading it over the years and for all your support.

Sunday, 27 September 2009

Jon the plumber is working as I type, and he assures me that he expects me to be able to use the Rayburn by the end of the week -- yippee!

In other news, earlier in the week, my friend Andy was making fun of me for having my electricity generated by wind, but really this a very simple thing that anybody can have, regardless of where you live. Good Energy provides 100% renewable electricity -- I think their mix is something like 99% wind and 1% solar, and if you are generating your own electricity, they will buy that back off you as well. Lots of other electricity companies offer so-called green tariffs, but they are more green-wash than actual green.

When I first moved into this house, the electricity was supplied by Scottish Power. I had to keep them as my electricity supplier for a few weeks until I could get switched over to Good Energy, and this process of course generated the obligatory phone call from somebody at Scottish Power trying to convince me not to switch. He started going on about some new competitive rate they were going to offer me and I explained that I wasn't switching to save money but because I wanted to be on a green tariff. He replied that Scottish Power was a green electricity supplier but when I asked him to send me details about where their electricity comes from he ended the call and I haven't heard from them since. If you're on a green tariff from somebody other than Good Energy, ask them what their electricity mix actually comprises -- you'll be surprised. Also, bear in mind that even if they are supplying you with 100% renewable electricity, they are still selling non-renewables to other customers. Really, you have no reason not to switch now.

Sunday, 20 September 2009

Rayburn flue has now been fitted, and am just waiting for Jon to finish making hay so he can come install the new hot water cylinder, etc. Still won't have kitchen units for a while as I haven't even ordered them yet (although I might do that tomorrow) but have got thoroughly fed up with eating out all the time and am so desperate to be able to cook again that I think I am going to try to rearrange the boxes in my dining room so that I can get at the table and use David & Angela's gas camping stove again...

Work has been very busy this week -- was up at Aberystwyth Food & Drink Festival on Saturday and it was mad -- I didn't stop to breathe at all between about 9:30 and 1:30! A good day, but hopefully this week will be a bit less insane. Also, I know I should have written about this before rather than after the fact, but you should still be able to see it on iPlayer or something -- the goat farm was featured on Hairy Bikers on BBC2 last Friday evening, so check it out and you can see where I work!

Also had an interesting conversation with the people at Dŵr Cymru. At Bwlchyrhyd, we had spring water and a septic tank, so didn't have to deal with water rates, but now that I'm here in town, I do. A lot of people (myself included) mistakenly think that if you have a water meter installed, that's it, and you can't ever go back, which makes them reluctant to take the chance in case it ends up costing more. The good news is, that's not true. You've got 12 months to change your mind about the meter, which is more than enough time to see if it's saving you money (or if you should be reducing your water usage!) Give it a try -- if you are conserving water like you should be, odds are it will save you money as well. I have filled in my application form and will keep you posted when I discover how much water I am actually using (I suspect it's quite minimal...)

Sunday, 13 September 2009

Still no luck uploading photos, and at this point, I don't think there's going to be -- was speaking to a friend last night who said that she'd never succeeded in uploading photos on a dial-up connection either, so sorry folks, but I think this may become a text-based blog. If you want to see photos of anything I write about, send me a letter at 60 Heol Cennen, Ffairfach, Llandeilo, SA19 6UH with photos of what you're up to, and I'll send you one back.

Not much news to report really -- no new progress on the Rayburn so I will have to ring Down Home tomorrow morning and see what is going on there. Have been working full-time at Cothi Valley Goats so that is occupying most of my time at the moment.

If you're in Aberystwyth next Saturday, pop by the market and say hello!

Sunday, 30 August 2009

Still in America. Didn't make it to the fibre festival yesterday due to the incredible unhelpfulness of the folks at Avis yesterday, so don't have much to say now as I was planning on writing about that, so sorry I didn't get to meet up with you Cyndy...

Tuesday, 25 August 2009

Apologies for having missed the last two Sundays. I'm currently travelling around America for a few weeks, so am writing this from my friend Noah's house in Richmond. Was going to try to post last Sunday before I left but was busy ripping out the last of my kitchen so didn't get a chance.

The upshot of this is that I have no kitchen at the moment. Handily, as I'm not there, it doesn't really matter, and, fingers crossed, my Rayburn will be installed while I'm away.

I've also been talking to some people about the image uploading thing so hopefully I'll sort that when I get back as well.

Sunday, 9 August 2009

Just been trying to get things sorted out in the house. I'm putting a Rayburn in the kitchen, but there's no cooker there at the moment, so am using a gas camping stove that Angela & David have kindly leant me.

Also working on getting the damp in the bedroom sorted -- we've discovered that there's no flashing on the chimney, so O is putting that up and hopefully that will solve it.

Got my new chest freezer delivered -- the old one was too big for the world's smallest house -- so am back to eating my own lambs again.

Not much else really -- just realising that I haven't got rid of enough stuff as there's no place to put it all! How did I come to own so many things and do I really need them all???

Friday, 17 July 2009

The long awaited exciting news is finally here -- we have found a buyer for Bwlchyrhyd and I am moving!!! As you will see, the name of the blog has changed, but the URL will stay the same.

In a way, this will be even more of an exciting challenge than Bwlchyrhyd was -- it's one thing to live on a smallholding in the countryside and say you're going to be self-sufficient -- it's another to say you're going to do the same thing on the edge of a small town. I do realise that not everybody is lucky enough to have the opportunity to live somewhere like Bwlchyrhyd, but my new house is probably a lot more similar to more people's living situations -- so hopefully this can be a useful and educational experience/experiment.

Am posting this from a friend's house as I am literally mid-move right now, but will try to blog as regularly as I can, so watch this space!

Saturday, 6 June 2009

Say you're designing the heating/hot water/cooking system for a small 1 bedroom house, not a new build. Which of the following is the most efficient/has smallest carbon emissions?

1. Heat (and hot water in winter) provided by wood burner with back boiler connected to hot water cylinder & radiators. Hot water in summer provided by solar thermal panels, backed up by an electric immersion heater powered by either PV panels or wind turbine backed up by connection to green electricity supplier. Cooking to be done on electric cooker.

2. Heat provided by wood burner in lounge & wood burning Rayburn in kitchen/diner. Hot water provided by back boiler on Rayburn. Cooking to be done on Rayburn. Either PV panels or wind turbine to provide for electricity needs (lighting, etc.)

Tuesday, 19 May 2009

Angela brought me back this beautiful (and delicious) saffron loaf from Cornwall -- it reminded me a bit of a sweet Rosh Hashanahchallah, but according to Jane Grigson's recipie, it doesn't contain eggs -- all that lovely colour just comes from the saffron!

Speaking of food, I just finished reading a really scary book called The Death of Grass by John Christopher. I originally caught part of this a couple of months ago when it was dramatised for Radio 4, and I would highly reccomend it. It was written in 1956, and either John Christopher just has a vivid imagination or else he's psychic -- it's uncannily relevant right now.

Sunday, 12 April 2009

I know I keep saying exciting things are coming soon, and they are; you will just have to wait a little longer.

The above photo was taken seconds before the sun came up properly. I was getting ready to go to work and stepped outside and saw that. Nipped back in, grabbed the camera, took the photo. By the time I'd put the camera back inside and gone back out again, the sun was up properly and that lovely pink glow was gone -- that's a bit what my life feels like at the moment -- the sun will be up shortly -- but I am not going to say anything now and jinx things so you will just have to wait a bit longer.

The peacock has come to visit again today -- not quite sure why, but he does seem to like spending time over here at this time of year. It's a lovely day so I am now off out to hang my laundry on the line.

Sunday, 29 March 2009

"Imagine the Earth devoid of human life, inhabited only by plants and animals. Would it still have a past and a future? Could we still speak of time in any meaningful way? The question 'What time is it?' or 'What's the date today?' -- if anybody were there to ask it -- would be quite meaningless. The oak tree or the eagle would be bemused by such a question. 'What time?' they would ask. 'Well, of course, it's now. The time is now. What else is there?'"

Sunday, 1 March 2009

Happy St David's Day... Daffodils are not out yet -- I have seen some open in other places, but not here at Bwlchyrhyd -- but I have finally succeeded in seeing last Wednesday's new moon (I guess it's not really so new now, but...)

Friday, 6 February 2009

Still rather wintry up here, although the lane is now largely cleared. However, and I don't have a photo of this I'm afraid as I was in the car and didn't have my camera with me, but I was driving home through Salem this evening and I actually saw daffodils by the side of the road, in full bloom -- shocking!

Wow -- if I thought I was happy yesterday, that was nothing... At some point in the middle of the night I woke up and it was quite bright as the moon is about half full, and I could see that already there was more snow, and now there is even more. This photo was taken about an hour ago from the top of the field looking down the Cothi Valley -- and it's snowed even more since then -- I am sat here now looking out at my footsteps across the yard and they are rapidly getting covered over!

This was taken about 8:00 this morning just as the sun was trying to peek over the edge of the mountain:

Thursday, 29 January 2009

We have had more lambs born this week. Some of them are really small so I have been bringing them into the house for some colostrum. They are that small Willow the Jack Russell looks huge against them. To keep the lambs warm I put them into the Rayburn bottom oven of course its only warm not hot. Some of the lambs are very rattly on the lungs, once they get over that they seem to go on and live. We have lost a few.